It's back & it's good

Fondues offer fun ways to entertain (and romance)

Fondue makes a great party even better

Photograph by: Getty Images
, Getty Images

It's time to do the 'due. Time to dust off the fondue pots and, in true Swiss tradition, melt some cheese and chocolate. To us, nothing says fondue like snow and New Year's.

We're apparently not alone. Has anyone else noticed that more and more revellers are staying in on New Year's Eve and dipping into a fondue house party? What gives?

First off, how do you improve on the relaxed combo of social and culinary interaction that fondue brings, especially during the holidays? And besides, there aren't many restaurants offering up fondue on their menus.

Fondue comes in various forms--oil, broth, cheese and chocolate. We like them all, but the cheese and the chocolate versions are the ones we tend to submerge ourselves in (wethinks it's the butterfat and the sugar). Plus, we have good ceramic fondue pots for the cheese and the chocolate versions, but our metal pot for the other two types has seen better days.

Cheese and chocolate fondues are remarkably simple once you get the hang of the heats and textures involved. The heat has to be high enough to keep everything liquid, but not so hot that it burns the contents. Fret not --it may take a few fondue feasts to get the right "feel." But basically, you melt stuff, then you dip other stuff into the melted stuff, then you eat.

The key elements? Make sure you have way more melted stuff than you think you'll need. And offer separate forks for dipping and for eating. See? Simple. (One more note: the wine of choice with cheese fondue is white, which we found out in Switzerland a few decades ago when we ordered red.)

Anyway, we asked two of the area's main melting men, restaurateurs whose restaurants do, in fact, offer fondue, to share a couple of recipes. Now it's time to do the 'due.

Banff's Ticino, and its owner Erwin Widmer, has been melting cheese since 1974. For the past 13 years, Ticino has been situated in the High Country Inn and looks more Swiss than most restaurants in the Swiss Alps. It rings with cowbells, and alpenhorns and old skis hanging on the walls. Tables are adorned with stained glass lamps glowing with the flags of Switzerland and the Swiss canton of Ticino.

It's a warm and comfortable place, a destination for both international tourists and locals-in-the-know. Ticino has some of the best service in Banff, in no small part due to the presence of Widmer himself and the fact that many staff have worked there for decades.

The menu, overseen by chef Urs Manser, is a blend of Swiss (raclette, roast duck with apples, escargots) and Italian (gnocchi with smoked duck and walnut sauce, veal scallopini, minestrone), showing the cross-cultural tone of the canton of Ticino. Manser has included Canadian dishes too--bison rib-eye, halibut in red-pepper cream, salmon filet--to round out the list.

But for many, Ticino is a fondue destination, a place where fondue has been refined to an apres-ski art form. They do cheese, oil and chocolate fondues--we are particularly fond of their cheese version. With its combination of Gruyere, Emmenthal and whipping cream, it is rich and filled with all the excess of the season. (Mmmm, butterfat.)

In Calgary, the fondue king is the always-smiling Martin Maheux. And smile he should. Since opening Laurier Lounge in 2005, he has built a loyal following for his tapas-style menu, creative cocktails and list of fondues. He survived a move from a now-demolished 17th Avenue location last year and found an even better spot in one of Calgary's more unusual historic sites, the childhood home of George Stanley, the designer of the Canadian flag.

Laurier Lounge is named after our eighth prime minister, Sir Wilfrid Laurier. The Quebec-born Maheux enjoys the connection to Canadian history, and he honours the Stanley story with a Canadian flag hanging in Stanley's former bedroom. With two storeys and small rooms, there are many cozy corners and a casual bar. In the summer, a big deck offers a sheltered oasis from the buzz of the Beltline. And someday, the construction that clogs the area will be finished.

The Laurier focuses on good food for a decent price. There are tapas dishes from $6 to $15 and larger main courses for larger prices. The menu rambles from bacon-wrapped dates and seared scallops to coquilles St. Jacques and lobster ravioli. A nod to Quebec, there is poutine and steak frites. And, of course, there are cheese, broth, and chocolate fondues, including a three-course fondue blowout for two at $110. (It starts with cheese fondue, features a seafood fondue main course and ends with chocolate.)

Maheux has shared his recipe for chocolate fondue, a simple process that is heightened by the dunking of banana bread. That alone can keep us dipping and dipping.

Chocolate Fondue

Laurier Lounge co-owner/chef Martin Maheux suggests dipping ingredients such as strawberries, banana slices, pineapple spears, raspberries, honeydew wedges and frozen grapes into his chocolate fondue. You could even dip homemade banana bread--yum. Using good-quality chocolate is the key here. Maheux uses Barry Callebaut (yes Barry, not Bernard). He adds that the chocolate fondue should remain dip-able for an hour if your fondue pot is warm to start with and sitting over a tea-light candle.

14oz (400g)milkchocolate, coarsely chopped

Fruit platter place a double boiler over low heat, so water will be hot, but not simmering.

Place chopped chocolate in top of the double boiler.

Melt chocolate slowly, stirring frequently with a spatula in a folding motion until smooth.

Transfer to a warm fondue pot and place on the table over a tea-light candle.

Each diner spears fruit with fondue fork and dips into chocolate.

serves 3 to 4.

cook's note: if you want to spice it up, you can also add your favourite liquor such as Bailey's irish cream, amaretto, or maheux's favourite, Grand marnier.

Swiss Cheese Fondue

You'll ideally need a ceramic fondue pot for this fondue from Ticino. Metal pots can get too hot and burn the cheese. Ticino's owner Erwin Widmer suggests dipping things other than bread, too-- perhaps some steamed baby potatoes or blanched broccoli. We also like gherkins, steamed brussels sprouts, red peppers and even apple.

Here's another suggestion from Widmer regarding the optional kirsch. For those who want it, pour each person a shot glass of the cherry brandy. They can then dip the corner of their bread cubes into the kirsch and then into the cheese. Widmer says gin works well too. We can vouch for both, but the key is to dunk just the corner, not the whole cube.

4 tbsp (60 ml) cornstarch

1½ cup (300 ml) dry white wine, divided

garlic clove, sliced in half

3/4 cup (175 ml)whipping cream

6½oz (180g)emmenthalcheese, shredded

6½ oz

(180 g) Gruyere cheese, shredded

pinch white pepper pinch ground nutmeg

pinch salt 2 tbsp (25 ml) kirsch (optional)

loaf french bread, cut into 3/4-inch (2-cm) cubes

dissolve cornstarch in 1/4 cup (50 ml)white wine to make a thin paste. set aside. rub the fondue pot with cut sides of garlic clove. leave clove in the bottom. add remaining 1 cup (250 ml) white wine, whipping cream, cheeses, white pepper, nutmeg, and salt. place the fondue pot on the stove over low heat, stirring constantly until cheese is melted. Bring to a low boil. add cornstarch paste a tablespoon at a time, stirring well after each addition. (you may only need 2 to 3 tablespoonfuls to achieve the desired consistency. the fondue is ready when cheese thickens and is silky smooth.) stir in kirsch, if desired. place the fondue pot over a lit fondue burner on the table. stir often while dining. serves 4.

cook's note: if you need more cheese fondue, make a second pot --don't add more volume to this pot.